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Sustainability Catalogue

Modern Dairy Human Rights Protection Policy

1. Introduction

At Modern Dairy, we are committed to respecting and promoting human rights in our business operations, supply chain and communities. We believe that human rights are the foundation of our vision to create a modern, sustainable, and healthy dairy industry that benefits our customers, employees, shareholders, and society.

2. Scope of Policy

This policy is a public statement of intent that applies to all personnel (including board members and senior management) of Modern Dairy and its subsidiaries that have operational control, as well as any security contract providers that provide security services to Modern Dairy and its subsidiaries (note: As of the end of 2023, Modern Dairy’s security personnel are all employees of Modern Dairy and do not use contract security providers, hereinafter referred to as “security personnel”).

3. Basis for Policy Formulation

Modern Dairy has formulated the Modern Dairy Human Rights Protection Policy by referring to international human rights documents and principles such as the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and combining the characteristics and actual situation of Modern Dairy’s business (hereinafter referred to as “this Policy”).

4. Principles

  • We respect the dignity and diversity of all people and treat them fairly, equally and without discrimination.
  • We respect the rights to life, liberty and security of person as stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  • We do not tolerate any harassment, abuse or violence in our workplace or business relationships.
  • We respect the personal freedom and privacy of our employees and protect their personal data.
  • We respect the freedom of association and collective bargaining rights of our employees and communicate with them in good faith and constructive dialogue.
  • We require all security personnel to comply with the relevant laws and regulations and professional standards and codes of conduct of the country (region) where they operate. We require all security personnel to act in accordance with the law and provide professional services.

5. Human Rights Protection Targets

  • In our business operations (including the daily work of security personnel), we strive to avoid any serious human rights violations and timely handle and resolve any human rights complaints or grievances.
  • In our communities, we actively participate in human rights-related projects and activities and establish good communication and cooperation with local stakeholders.
  • In our organization, we regularly conduct human rights protection training for all employees (including security personnel).

6. Practice

6.1 Respect for Human Rights

We should comply with applicable international documents and human rights obligations, and respect the human rights and dignity of stakeholders, including our customers, employees, suppliers, contractors, shareholders, security personnel and the public. We avoid any discrimination, harassment, abuse, or violence based on race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, disability, or other identity. We strive to provide our employees with a safe, healthy, and inclusive work environment, where they can develop their skills and talents, enjoy their work, and realize their potential. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations regarding working hours, wages, benefits, and social security. We support their well-being by providing health care, education and other social services for our employees and their families.

6.2 Prohibiting Forced Labor

We must prevent any form of forced or compulsory labor, such as all work must be done voluntarily, and all workers must be allowed to freely terminate their employment relationship with reasonable notice. We must not to use any form of threats, violence, restrictions, detention, or other means to force workers to continue working or deprive them of their freedom. We must not restrict workers’ movement or communication in any way, engage in slave labor resulting from human trafficking, or illegally confiscate workers’ identity documents, passports or other important documents.

6.3 Environmental Protection

We are committed to protecting the environment and addressing the challenges of climate change. We adopt sustainable practices in the production, processing, distribution, and consumption of dairy products. We use natural resources efficiently and responsibly, reduce waste and emissions, and promote biodiversity. We respect the right of animals to be treated humanely and cared for.

6.4 Social Participation

We respect the rights of local communities and residents to their land, resources, culture, and traditions. We contribute to the social and economic development of the communities where we operate by creating employment opportunities, supporting local businesses, paying taxes, investing in infrastructure, and participating in charitable causes and philanthropic programs.

6.5 Contract Security Providers or Security Personnel

Modern Dairy requires contract security providers (if any) or security personnel to respect the rights and interests of community residents, carry out security work in a way that respects human rights, comply with relevant laws and regulations and professional standards and codes of conduct, regularly participate in human rights protection training conducted by Modern Dairy, and require them to resolve any possible conflicts in a responsible manner, and oppose the use of violence in any disputes.

7. Expectations

We expect our employees, security personnel, suppliers, contractors, partners, customers, and other stakeholders to share our commitment to human rights and comply with this Policy. We conduct due diligence on our business relationships to identify, prevent, mitigate, and account for any adverse human rights impacts. We provide channels for reporting any human rights issues or grievances related to our business activities. We investigate any allegations of human rights violations in a timely and transparent manner and take appropriate remedial measures to address any confirmed cases of human rights violations.

8. Training

To better implement this policy, we plan to conduct human rights protection training for employees, and the following are our targets, methods, content, etc.

8.1 Targets: Our training targets are to raise the awareness and understanding of all employees, including security personnel, on human rights protection, and to enable them to understand the requirements and principles of this Policy, and how to respect and promote human rights in their daily work.

8.2 Methods: We conduct human rights protection training at least once a year, covering all employees and security personnel. We adopt online training as the form and push the training notice to all employees and security personnel through the Office Automation (“OA”) Collaborative System. Our human rights protection training requires all employees and security personnel to participate. After the online training is completed, the training screen recording will be uploaded to the “Niurenhui” learning platform, so that all employees and security personnel can view and learn at any time. In addition, we will use newsletters or graphic propaganda to convey the policy requirements, precautions, or violations of human rights protection.

8.3 Content: Our training content includes the following aspects:

  • The basic concepts and international documents of human rights protection, including UN Declaration of Human Rights, as well as the background and purpose of this Policy.
  • The main content and principles of this Policy, as well as our specific measures and expectations in environmental protection, social participation, security personnel and other aspects.
  • The implementation and supervision mechanism of this Policy, as well as our reporting channels and remedial measures.

9. Monitoring, Audit and Reporting

We conduct human rights risk assessments on our business operations every year to identify, prevent, mitigate, and account for any adverse human rights impacts. We audit and monitor the implementation of this Policy annually, which includes whether security personnel comply with this Policy to inspect and verify policy effectiveness.

  • Audit process and methods: We use questionnaires to monitor the compliance of this Policy, and conduct audit coverage of the whole group by randomly issuing online questionnaires, and conduct surveys on the human rights protection situation of employees and security personnel, and the survey is conducted in a confidential manner. The group conducts audit evaluation and monitoring of human rights effectiveness once a year.
  • Audit results: The company updates the Human Rights Protection Policy, tools, processes, and targets based on the assessment results of compliance with this Policy to ensure its effectiveness. For key risk issues, any changes in risk level, or new and emerging risks, they will be reported to the management in a timely manner. We welcome feedback from stakeholders on how we can improve our human rights practices. We seek to learn from best practices and collaborate with others to advance human rights in our industry and other fields.

We encourage all employees, suppliers, contractors, partners, customers, and other stakeholders to report any actual or suspected violations of this policy or any applicable laws and regulations. The company provides multiple reporting channels, such as:

  • Communicating with direct supervisors or department heads
  • Contacting the human resources department
  • Contacting the discipline inspection office

10. Conclusion

We are proud of our achievements in respecting and promoting human rights in our business operations. However, we also realize that in this ever-changing world, we face challenges and opportunities. We are committed to continuously improving and innovating our human rights approach. We believe that by doing so, we can create value for ourselves and society.